The event, organized by the Commission’s Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy, will bring together citizens, representatives of civil society, politicians, policy-makers, and academia from across the EU and beyond and will focus on how to foster closer cooperation with citizens and civil society and give them a more prominent role in the governance of the policy, as well as in the implementation of the EU-funded projects on the ground and the dissemination of their results.
Cohesion Policy is the main investment policy of the Union. It supports job creation, competitiveness, economic growth, improved quality of life, social inclusion and sustainable development.
These investments generate tangible outcomes for citizens on the ground in all territories. 40 % of European citizens are aware of a project co-financed by EU funds: this is not enough.
Evidence and experience show that projects are of higher quality when citizens are engaged in selection and delivery. In addition, this kind of engagement generates “ownership”. Yet such engagement varies across programs. Against this background, the European Commission will organize a conference on 6 February 2020 to examine what initiatives under Cohesion Policy have worked to strengthen citizen engagement and to get inspiration for Cohesion Policy from examples of citizen participation in other contexts. On top of direct engagement, civil society organizations (CSOs) are meant amongst many to engage with citizens. An open and transparent debate with all involved parties will allow us to take a users’ perspective on how to bring Cohesion Policy closer to citizens. The conference will take place under the political leadership and with the participation of Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira.
The key objectives are to:
1. Facilitate a discussion on the role of citizens and civil society in Cohesion Policy.
2. Identify interesting practices and innovative ways of cooperation between citizens and authorities that can inspire Cohesion Policy actors.
3. Develop political momentum for action to enhance cooperation between citizens and authorities in the future Cohesion Policy and programs in the Member States. This document provides the background and larger policy context of the conference organized on 6 February 2020, and a brief overview of the state of play of citizen and civil society engagement in Cohesion Policy.
The importance of more citizen engagement was already recognized and strengthened in the Lisbon Treaty with the European citizens’ initiative. On 30 April 2019, the Commission laid down its vision for a “new strategic agenda for the EU 2019-2024” highlighting the need for strengthened citizen engagement2. In her political guidelines for the 2019-2024 Commission, President Ursula von der Leyen expressed her will for European citizens to play a leading and active part in building the future of our Union. Dubravka Šuica, Vice-President for Democracy and Demography, has been mandated to organize a Conference on the Future of Europe, to start in autumn 2020 to ensure Europeans “have their say on how their Union is run and what it delivers on”. During her confirmation hearing before the European Parliament, Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira said that “all citizens, wherever they are, can feel that they are part of this project” and committed to “visit the regions to understand local concerns–and local aspirations” with the aim “(t)o encourage faster and better implementation of projects, and to let communities know they are not left behind.”
Good governance Cohesion Policy represents almost a third of the total EU budget. It brings EU policy priorities closer to regions and territories, translating wide policy objectives into specific territorial investment priorities. Member States are primarily in charge of the daily implementation of this budget. The 7th Cohesion Report underlined the importance of quality of governance and institutions in the Member States and regions for economic development and effectiveness of public investment, including that co-financed by Cohesion Policy. Closer cooperation with citizens and civil society are one of the fundamental elements of good governance of Cohesion Policy through EU structural funds. In fact, there is a large consensus among academics, public authorities, and civil society organizations that engaging with citizens is part of good public governance practice. Looking in particular at Cohesion Policy, the engagement of citizens brings added value to public authorities on several fronts:
it ensures that expertise and technical know-how is considered during decision-making processes, enabling better thematic balance and focus;
it strengthens commitment and ownership of policy decisions at local level and thus facilitates implementation;
and
it deepens complementarities with other policies, strategies and funding sources.
Cohesion Policy is the main investment policy of the Union. It supports job creation, competitiveness, economic growth, improved quality of life, social inclusion and sustainable development.
These investments generate tangible outcomes for citizens on the ground in all territories. 40 % of European citizens are aware of a project co-financed by EU funds: this is not enough.
Evidence and experience show that projects are of higher quality when citizens are engaged in selection and delivery. In addition, this kind of engagement generates “ownership”. Yet such engagement varies across programs. Against this background, the European Commission will organize a conference on 6 February 2020 to examine what initiatives under Cohesion Policy have worked to strengthen citizen engagement and to get inspiration for Cohesion Policy from examples of citizen participation in other contexts. On top of direct engagement, civil society organizations (CSOs) are meant amongst many to engage with citizens. An open and transparent debate with all involved parties will allow us to take a users’ perspective on how to bring Cohesion Policy closer to citizens. The conference will take place under the political leadership and with the participation of Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira.
The key objectives are to:
1. Facilitate a discussion on the role of citizens and civil society in Cohesion Policy.
2. Identify interesting practices and innovative ways of cooperation between citizens and authorities that can inspire Cohesion Policy actors.
3. Develop political momentum for action to enhance cooperation between citizens and authorities in the future Cohesion Policy and programs in the Member States. This document provides the background and larger policy context of the conference organized on 6 February 2020, and a brief overview of the state of play of citizen and civil society engagement in Cohesion Policy.
The importance of more citizen engagement was already recognized and strengthened in the Lisbon Treaty with the European citizens’ initiative. On 30 April 2019, the Commission laid down its vision for a “new strategic agenda for the EU 2019-2024” highlighting the need for strengthened citizen engagement2. In her political guidelines for the 2019-2024 Commission, President Ursula von der Leyen expressed her will for European citizens to play a leading and active part in building the future of our Union. Dubravka Šuica, Vice-President for Democracy and Demography, has been mandated to organize a Conference on the Future of Europe, to start in autumn 2020 to ensure Europeans “have their say on how their Union is run and what it delivers on”. During her confirmation hearing before the European Parliament, Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira said that “all citizens, wherever they are, can feel that they are part of this project” and committed to “visit the regions to understand local concerns–and local aspirations” with the aim “(t)o encourage faster and better implementation of projects, and to let communities know they are not left behind.”
Good governance Cohesion Policy represents almost a third of the total EU budget. It brings EU policy priorities closer to regions and territories, translating wide policy objectives into specific territorial investment priorities. Member States are primarily in charge of the daily implementation of this budget. The 7th Cohesion Report underlined the importance of quality of governance and institutions in the Member States and regions for economic development and effectiveness of public investment, including that co-financed by Cohesion Policy. Closer cooperation with citizens and civil society are one of the fundamental elements of good governance of Cohesion Policy through EU structural funds. In fact, there is a large consensus among academics, public authorities, and civil society organizations that engaging with citizens is part of good public governance practice. Looking in particular at Cohesion Policy, the engagement of citizens brings added value to public authorities on several fronts:
it ensures that expertise and technical know-how is considered during decision-making processes, enabling better thematic balance and focus;
it strengthens commitment and ownership of policy decisions at local level and thus facilitates implementation;
and
it deepens complementarities with other policies, strategies and funding sources.
